Courtesy of New Mexico Athletics

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The New Mexico men’s basketball team saw its 2023-24 season come to an end with a 77-56 loss to Clemson in a NCAA Tournament first round matchup at the FedEx Forum. The Lobos (26-10) cap a season that saw them capture the Mountain West Championship and their first NCAA appearance in a decade, while the Tigers (22-11) advance to play Baylor in Sunday’s second round.

Nelly Junior Joseph led the Lobos with 14 points and 12 rebounds, posting his ninth double-double of the season. Jaelen House added 12 points and two assists in his final collegiate game.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Clemson used a hot start offensively to take a 11-7 lead after the opening four minutes of play. A 19-2 Tiger run pushed the advantage to 30-11 just past the midway point of the half. A 6-0 UNM run cut the margin to 32-19 with 6:10 left in the half and closed the gap to 11 at 34-23 with 4:30 to play. The Lobos cut the margin to 10 in the final minute before the Tigers took a 42-28 lead into the break. Joseph had eight points and seven rebounds in the first half to lead New Mexico.

In the second half, Clemson scored the first five points to push the lead to 19 as they led 51-30 with 17:10 left to play. An 8-0 Lobo run cut the deficit to 51-38 with 13:20 to go but Clemson would answer with an 8-0 run to hold a 62-40 edge just past the midway point. The Lobos could only get within 17 the rest of the way as Clemson closed out the 21-point win.

LOBO NOTES
• The Lobos fall to 8-17 all-time in the NCAA Tournament
• The 26 wins were tied for sixth-most in UNM history and most in a decade
• New Mexico shot a season-low 29.7 percent from the floor, its lowest FG% since Jan. 6, 2021 (26.8% vs. Utah State)
• Two Lobos had double digit rebounds (Joseph-12, Toppin-10) for the first time in a NCAA game since 1999 (Lamont Long-12, Kenny Thomas-10) in first round vs. Missouri

QUOTABLE
“It was certainly the wrong day to go cold. We just couldn’t make a shot. Clemson had a lot do with that. They are big and disciplined. You really have to make shots against them because of how they pack the paint. It stings right now, but I am extremely proud of the growth in this program from where we started to where we are at now. To make the NCAA Tournament and win a conference championship in year three, that is great. We will keep it in perspective, we are grateful for an amazing year and we will continue to build.” – Richard Pitino